Although the TV series, which premieres on Sunday, is set before the events of the acclaimed crime drama, the new online comic, Better Call Saul: Client Development, actually spins out of the Season 2 episode of Breaking Bad that introduced Saul Goodman, the shady attorney played by Bob Odenkirk.

In the build-up to Sunday’s premiere of Turn, the Revolutionary War thriller based on Alexander Rose’s fascinating 2007 book Washington’s Spies, AMC has released a beautifully illustrated online comic that details the backstories of the members of the Culper spy ring.

Turn: Origins is drawn by Steve Ellis, known for his work on High Moon, Box 13 and The Only Living Boy, and penned by Turn writer LaToya Morgan, whose credits include Shameless and Parenthood. Kevin Colden did the lettering.

Legal | The creator of the Islamic superhero comic The 99 says he hasn’t been officially notified of a reported ban of the animated adaptation of his comic in Saudi Arabia. “Nobody ever contacted me, nobody ever asked me any questions,” Naif Al Mutawa says. There have been numerous Twitter campaigns against me for a while now and so for me it’s not new. Maybe it is true this time, but I find it very difficult to believe that a group as influential and high profile as them [Saudi Arabia’s Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta] wouldn’t recognize the good that The 99 has done for Muslims around the world.” He adds that the comic has been available in Saudi Arabia for seven years, while the cartoon has been airing for two and a half years, making the timing of a ban “a bit weird.” [Gulf Business]

Since winning the first monthly Zuda contest, High Moon creators David Gallaher and Steve Ellis have gone on to work together on Deadlands: The Devil’s Six Gun, Box 13 and a couple of Winter Guard stories for Marvel. It’s a collaboration that works, and now the duo is re-teaming on a new Kickstarter-funded project called The Only Living Boy.

They plan to self-publish the project as a series of four 50-page comics, and they’re using Kickstarter to raise money to publish the first volume in time for the San Diego Comic Con this summer. Here’s how they describe the project:

THE ONLY LIVING BOY is a young adult graphic novel that tells the story of Erik Farrell, a 12-year old boy, who finds himself with alone and abandoned in a patchwork world. As the last human boy left on earth, he’ll try to piece his memory back together, while trying to piece together a new life for himself. Fighting beside Erik are the beguiling, insect princess Thea and the tenacious, mermaid warrior Morgan.

His opposition is a menagerie of exotic and dangerous creatures all under the command of the Dreaded Lord Baalikar and the fiendish Doctor Once.

The series, they say, is “inspired by pulp adventure novels and stories we grew up on — like John Carter, Tarzan, Flash Gordon, Killraven, and the Jungle Book — but with a flavor all of its own!” It seems like you could add Jack Kirby’s Kamandi to that list as well.

Rewards for the project include both digital and physical copies of the book, prints, sketches, a portfolio review for aspiring artists and the chance to have your business “littering the grounds” of their world. You can check out their trailer for the book after the jump.

A new season of AMC’s Breaking Bad starts this Sunday, and to help promote it AMC has posted a new “choose your own adventure”-style game/webcomic thing to their site, starring the character Jesse Pinkman and drawn by High Moon and Winter Guard artist Steve Ellis. So even if you aren’t into the show, it’s really nice to look at.

Welcome to Food or Comics?, where every week we talk about what comics we’d buy at our local comic shop based on certain spending limits — $15 and $30 — as well as what we’d get if we had extra money or a gift card to spend on a “Splurge” item.

If I had $15, I’d start with Alpha Flight #1 ($3.99). I had mostly positive feelings about the prequel issue with the only negatives being a mixture of “that doesn’t look like Sasquatch” and some anxiety born from being used to disappointment from Alpha Flight books. Neither of which has anything to do with the people creating the next eight issues, so I’m looking forward to this in a way that I haven’t since John Byrne left the book. Next I’d grab Flashpoint: Grodd of War #1 ($2.99), because an all-out Gorilla Grodd comic sounds awesome. And then I’d give Godzilla: Gangsters and Goliaths #1 ($3.99) a shot to see how well IDW can manage two Godzilla comics at a time. They certainly managed the first one well. Finally, I’d pick up Mickey Mouse #309 ($3.99) because it’s a globe-trotting adventure with a ton of guest-stars, including my favorite: The Phantom Blot.

The first thing I did when I got to C2E2 was head to Artist Alley to see who was there. It’s always fascinating to see big-name talent rubbing shoulders with creators who haven’t been discovered yet. Here’s a quick look at some of the tables that caught my eye today.Continue Reading »

Today marks the third anniversary of our werewolf western series HIGH MOON. To celebrate, Steve Ellis and I thought we’d take the time to share with you our top list of werewolves that have influenced, entertained, and inspired us over the years.

Starting with this classic:

6. The Wolf Man

SE: You can’t go wrong with this classic tale of innocent Larry Talbot, a poor bastard of a man, who gets caught up in circumstances that are out of his control. I saw this when I was younger – so I’m not sure how much it would still hold up though.

DG: This is a simple yet effective atmospheric masterpiece of horror. Lon Chaney Jr. plays his role to perfection. This is the foundation that all great werewolf movies should be built upon.

All this month, the creative team of High Moon has been celebrating its third anniversary of entertaining folks. Robot 666 is joining in the celebratory fun today by interviewing artist Steve Ellis. In this email info exchange we delve into the series moving away from ZUDA and growing its audiences through different digital platforms. While he was unable to go into details, I think fans of High Moon will be happy to learn there will some more Western horror in the High Moon creative team’s future.

The entire series is also available digitally through Comixology’ Comics or DC Comics apps for the iPhone and iPad Operating System. You can also download the issues from here – and read them on your computer or import them them into your ipad or iphone. The first issue is free — and every additional issue is just 99 cents!

And finally, for those of you savvy comic reading gamers our there — HIGH MOON is also available through the DIGITAL COMICS store on the Playstation Network for your PSP.”

Added bonus at the end of this interview, instead of answering a question, Ellis asks the readers a question.

Tim O’Shea: This month marks the third anniversary of High Moon. Looking back at the past three years, what have been some of the high points for you?

Steve Ellis: The first high point was meeting David at NYCC and starting the whole process of collaboration and building the working friendship that we’ve built. The rewards of working in comics come in different forms, but the collaborative process is one of the greatest parts of it.

As I type this, my iPhone is downloading Box 13, the new made-for-the-iPhone comic by David Gallaher, who guest blogged with us not long ago, and his High Moon partner Steve Ellis. The comic itself is free via comiXology’s iPhone app, which costs 99 cents.

David Steinberger with comiXology, who I interviewed earlier this month for a story on Box 13 for the main CBR site, sent over some additional artwork from the comic:

This weekend marks the coming of the Harvest Moon, the full Moon that occurs closest to the autumn equinox.

In two years out of three, the Harvest Moon comes in September, but this year it occurs in October just before hunting season.

This ominous moon also signals the debut the long-awaited fourth season of the werewolf epic – HIGH MOON!

Written by myself, illustrated by Steve Ellis, and lettered by Scott O. Brown, this season brings Macgregor to the streets of London where he must unravel a hidden family curse before it claims its next victim.

After this weekend’s update, you see new pages every Monday by sundown.

And now, you too can draw vampires, werewolves, zombies, and monsters just like Steve Ellis with his new book: SCREAM! Inside this vivid 128 page book, you’ll learn expert monster-making techniques on how to create dynamic gestures, freakish lighting effects, heart-stopping terror, or dramatic gothic tragedy. You’ll also find over twenty tutorials to help you create you own dreadful creatures in the comfort of you own home, studio, or laboratory!

The book retails for $22.99 (or $16.55 on Amazon) and it is perfect gift for the monsters in your life.